Federal Hall National Memorial

 

Visited: July 2024

Nearby city: New York City, NY

At the intersection of Wall Street and Broad Street, in the heart of the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, you will find the location of the country's first capitol building established under the Constitution. 

Federal Hall National Memorial marks the site where George Washington took the inaugural oath as our nation's first president, and where the U.S. Congress first held session.

The original building at this spot, built in 1703, served as the City Hall of New York City. In 1765, delegates from nine colonies met here to form the Contitental Congress of 1765 (aka Stamp Act Congress) to seek a unified strategy against the newly imposed taxes by the British Parliament. After the American Revolution, the newly-independent nation's initial central government under the Articles of Confederation (the Congress of the Confederation) met here from 1784 to 1789.

When the U.S. Constitution was ratified, the first U.S. Congress (comprised of the Senate and House of Representatives) met here beginning on March 4, 1789. It was here that the Bill of Rights (which would eventually become the first 10 amendments of the Constitution) was officially proposed. The Judiciary Act of 1789 (which established the federal court system) was enacted here.

George Washington's inauguration was held here on April 30, 1789.

A drawing depicting Washington's inauguration at Federal Hall

In 1790, the U.S. capital was moved to Philadelphia. Federal Hall was then used as meeting place for other government assemblies and as a courthouse. In 1812, the New York City government sold the building and it was subsequently demolished.

The existing structure on the site was built in 1842 and served as the U.S. Custom House for the Port of New York. Starting in 1862, the building served as a United States Sub-treasury Office. In 1883, to celebrate the site's legacy, a large statue of George Washington, sculpted by John Quincy Adams Ward, was placed on the steps, where it stands to this day. 

George Washington statue in front of Federal Hall

The architecture is Greek Revival. At the time of our visit, extensive work was being done on the outside, hence, the building was mostly obstructed by scaffolding.

Finally, in 1939, the U.S. government announced that the building would be preserved as Federal Hall National Memorial, to be maintained and administered by the National Park Service.

inside Federal Hall

the main rotunda

one of the only surviving parts from the original Federal Hall is this piece of the balcony floor

Washington himself stood on this stone while taking the inaugural oath as our first President.

Just across the street from Federal Hall is the New York Stock Exchange.

the building's main facade on Wall Street

the Stock Exchange is one of New York's most iconic buildings

Although not the original building, it was neat to visit Federal Hall and see where our government began.

More info here: https://www.nps.gov/feha/index.htm